The Mountain-Prairie Region consists of 8 states in the heart of the American west including Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has a long tradition of scientific excellence and always uses the best-available science to inform its work to conserve fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitat for the benefit of the American public.
Created in 1903 by President Theodore Roosevelt, today's National Wildlife Refuge System protects habitats and wildlife across the country, from the Alaskan tundra to subtropical wetlands. Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Refuge System's 560-plus refuges cover more than 150 million acres and protect nearly 1,400 species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.
While national wildlife refuges were created to protect wildlife, they are for people too. Refuges are ideal places for people of all ages to explore and connect with the natural world. We invite you to learn more about and visit the national wildlife refuges and wetland management districts in Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
The Mountain-Prairie Region's Office of Ecological Services (ES) works to restore and protect healthy populations of fish, wildlife, and plants and the environments upon which they depend. Using the best available science, ES personnel work with Federal, State, Tribal, local, and non-profit stakeholders, as well as private land owners, to avoid, minimize, and mitigate threats to our Nation's natural resources.
Providing leadership in the conservation of migratory bird habitat through partnerships, grants, and outreach for present and future generations. The Migratory Bird Program is responsible for maintaining healthy migratory bird populations for the benefit of the American people.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Fish and Aquatic Conservation Program in the Mountain-Prairie Region helps conserve, protect, and enhance aquatic resources and provides economically valuable recreational fishing to anglers across the country. The program comprises 12 National Fish Hatcheries.
Law enforcement is essential to virtually every aspect of wildlife conservation. The Office of Law Enforcement contributes to Service efforts to manage ecosystems, save endangered species, conserve migratory birds, preserve wildlife habitat, restore fisheries, combat invasive species, and promote international wildlife conservation.
External Affairs staff in the Mountain-Prairie Region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provides support to the regional office and field stations to communicate and facilitate information about the Service's programs to the public, media, Congress, Tribes, partners, and other stakeholders in the 8-state region.
The Preble's meadow jumping mouse (Zapus hudonius preblei) (Preble's or PMJM) is a small mammal
approximately 9-inches in length with large hind feet adapted for jumping, a long bicolor tail (which accounts
for 60% of its length), and a distinct dark stripe down the middle of its back, bordered on either side by gray
to orange-brown fur. This largely nocturnal mouse lives primarily in heavily vegetated, shrub dominated riparian
(streamside) habitats and immediately adjacent upland habitats along the foothills of southeastern Wyoming south
to Colorado Springs along the eastern edge of the Front Range of Colorado. The Preble's mouse enters hibernation
in September or October and doesn't emerge until May. Its diet changes seasonally and consists of insects, seeds,
fungus, fruit and more.
Once the glaciers receded from the front range of Colorado and the foothills of Wyoming and the climate became
drier, the Preble mouse was confined to the riparian systems where moisture was plentiful. The eastern boundary
for the Preble's is likely defined by the dry shortgrass prairie, which may present a barrier to eastward
expansion. Preble's is one of twelve subspecies of meadow jumping mice found throughout North America.
Typical habitat for Preble's is comprised of well-developed plains riparian vegetation with adjacent, relatively
undisturbed grassland communities and a nearby water source. These riparian areas include a relatively dense
combination of grasses, forbs, and shrubs. Preble's are know to regularly range outward into adjacent uplands to
feed and hibernate.
Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse Retains Protections Under the ESA
May 23, 2013 Current scientific evidence indicates that removing the Preble's meadow jumping mouse from the
Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife is not warranted. The Service announced today the completion
of a 12-month status review in response to two petitions to delist the mouse. Habitat loss continues to
threaten the existence of the mouse throughout its range in Colorado and Wyoming. As a result, the Preble's
retains its protections as a threatened species under the Act
Endangered Species Act Protection for the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse Will Be Reinstated in
Wyoming
August: The Preble’s meadow jumping mouse (Zapus hudsonius preblei) will again be protected in Wyoming
under the Endangered Species Act as of August 6, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today. The
Service reinstated protections for the mouse, which is already protected in Colorado, in order to comply with a
requested court order.
Preble’s populations throughout the species’ range in Colorado and Wyoming will be federally
protected, with a special rule in place to allow rodent control, agricultural operations, landscape
maintenance, noxious weed control, ditch maintenance, and other specified activities to occur provided they are
conducted in accordance with the requirements of the special rule.
The Service will work closely with the State of Wyoming and private landowners to minimize the disruption this
action will cause. The agency will provide streamlined ESA consultation and identify feasible avoidance and
minimization measures in order to facilitate traditional land uses.
The Service will not reinstate its previous designation of critical habitat for the mouse in Wyoming.
Endangered Species Act Protection for the Preble’s Meadow Jumping Mouse Will Be Reinstated In
Wyoming
July 8, 2011: A federal judge in Denver accepted the Service’s proposed course of action to restore
Endangered Species Act (ESA) protection for the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse in Wyoming beginning August
6.
We had asked the judge to remand and vacate our 2008 decision to continue to protect the mouse in Colorado but
not in Wyoming. That decision was based on an interpretation of the meaning of “in danger of extinction
throughout all or a significant portion of the range” (SPR Language) that allowed us to apply ESA
protections to those portions of a species’ range where we believed it was most threatened instead of all
the places where it is found. However, since then two courts remanded listing decisions based on that
interpretation. Because we based our 2008 determination on that interpretation of SPR Language, we asked the
court to vacate that decision.
We have committed to conduct a new status review of the Preble’s and make a new finding on the petitions
from the State of Wyoming and Coloradans for Water Conservation and Development to delist Preble’s
populations in Wyoming by June 2013. The revised finding will be informed by the policy on SPR Language
currently under development.
In the interim, Preble’s populations in Colorado and Wyoming will be federally protected with a special
rule in place to allow rodent control, agricultural operations, landscape maintenance, noxious weed control,
ditch maintenance, and other specified activities to occur provided they are conducted in accordance with the
requirements of the special rule. We will be working closely with the State of Wyoming and private landowners
to minimize the disruption this action through streamlined ESA consultation and by providing feasible avoidance
and minimization measures.
The Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse was found in Colorado in 1899 by Edward A. Preble. Listed in 1995 as a
threatened species, the Preble's is long lived for a small mammal, compared to other species of mice and voles
that seldom live a full year. Preble's mice captured as adults were still alive two years later. The PMJM has a
long list of predators that includes garter snakes, rattlesnakes, bullfrogs, foxes, house cats, long-tailed
weasels, hawks, owls and others. The Preble's meadow jumping mouse is believed to have two litters each year
with an average size of five young.
The PMJM recently documented distribution includes Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Denver, Douglas, El Paso, Elbert,
Jefferson, Larimer and Weld counties in Colorado; and Albany, Laramie, Platte Goshen, and Converse counties in
Wyoming. The Colorado portion of this area had undergone rapid residential, commercial, and industrial
designation that has impacted the PMJM habitat.
On July 10, 2008, the Service removed Endangered Species Act protections for Preble's meadow jumping mouse
populations in Wyoming and amended the listing for Preble's to indicate the subspecies remains protected as a
threatened species in the Colorado portion of its range.(74 FR 52066)
The Service has determined the best commercial and scientific information available demonstrates that the
Preble's meadow jumping mouse is a valid subspecies and should not be removed from the list of threatened and
endangered species based on taxonomic revision.
Background: On May 13, 1998, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) designated the
mouse as threatened in its entire range (63 FR 26517). On June 23, 2003, we designated critical habitat for Preble’s (68 FR 37275). On May 20, 2004, we made permanent a final section 4(d) special rule for
the Preble’s that provides exemptions from Section 9 take prohibitions for certain rodent control
activities, ongoing agricultural activities, maintenance and replacement of existing landscaping, existing uses
of water, certain noxious weed control and ditch maintenance activities (66 FR 28125, 67 FR 61531, 69 FR 29101). Click here for more information on the Special Rule.
On February 2, 2005, we issued a 12-Month Finding on a petition to delist the Preble's and proposed to remove
the mouse from the Federal list of threatened and endangered species (70 FR 5404). On February 17, 2006, the Service extended the rule-making process an
additional six-months due to substantial disagreement regarding the sufficiency or accuracy of the available
data (71 FR 8556; 71 FR 16090).
On November 1, 2007, the Service announced a revised proposal to remove the Preble's populations in Wyoming
from the List of Threatened and Endangered Species; and proposing to amend the listing for Preble's to indicate
the subspecies remains threatened in the Colorado portion of its range. Additionally, the best commercial and
scientific information available demonstrates that the Preble's is a valid subspecies and should not be removed
from the List of Threatened and Endangered Species based upon taxonomic revision (73 FR 39790).
More information on PMJM can be found at the Service's ECOS web page or by contacting the Colorado field office at (303) 236-4773.
Section 4(f) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) of 1973, as amended directs the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to develop and implement recovery plans for species of animals and plants listed as endangered or threatened, unless such plans will not promote the conservation of the species. Recovery Plans delineate reasonable actions that are believed to be required to recover and protect listed species. Plans are published by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), sometimes prepared with the assistance of recovery teams, contractors State agencies and others. Recovery Plans do not necessarily represent the views nor the official positions or approval of any individuals or agencies involved in the plan formulation. However, approved Recovery Plans represent the official position of the Service, after they have completed public review and are signed by the Service.
The final recovery plan for the Preble’s mouse was developed in partnership with Colorado and Wyoming state wildlife agencies, The Nature Conservancy, Colorado Natural Heritage Program, ERO Resource Corporation, U.S. Forest Service and Ecology and Environment Inc. for ecology and environment. The recovery plan describes actions necessary for Preble’s mouse recovery, establishes criteria for delisting the species, and estimates the time and cost for implementing the needed recovery actions.
The Endangered Species Act prohibits take of listed species, but allows for exceptions. A 4(d) rule can be
prepared for threatened species that identifies these exceptions and the circumstances in which they apply. A
4(d) rule for the PMJM was adopted in May 2001 for a three year trial period. This rule was developed to allow
take of PMJM for certain activities which are considered to result in negligible or insignificant take are
addressed in this rule.
Private landowners, corporations, state or local governments, or other non-Federal landowners who wish to
conduct activities on their land that might incidentally harm (or "take") Preble's meadow jumping mouse must
first obtain an incidental take permit from the Service. To obtain a permit, the applicant must develop a
Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP), designed to ensure there is adequate minimizing and mitigating of the effects
the proposed activity might have to PMJM or PMJM habitat. This process allows development to proceed legally
that would otherwise result in the illegal tale of PMJM, while promoting PMJM conservation on private
(non-Federal) lands. In general, HCPs are required by the Service when permanent or temporary disturbance to
habitat occurs within 300 feet of 100 year floodplain of any drainages or sub drainages in the PMJM range. HCPs
for PMJM have been approved by the Service for private residences, large-scale commercial and residential
developments, natural resource management, and multiple-use trails. Currently the Service is working with Front
Range county planning and open space departments to develop regional HCPs which would address multiple planning
objectives.
Approved HCPs and issued incidental take pemrits (to date):
Maytag Trail
Douglas County
Multiple-use Trail
Leonard Property
Boulder County
Private Residence
Harding Property
Douglas County
Private Residence
Heir-Gannon (Brookside Business Center)
Douglas County
Business and Office Center
Strawberry Tierra (Lincoln Meadows)
Douglas County
Retail Development
Dahle Property
El Paso County
Private Residence
Lefever Property
El Paso County
Private Residence
Continental Homes (Piney Glen)
Douglas County
Residential Subdivision
Denver Water
Boulder, Denver, Jefferson Counties
Operations and Maintenance Activities
Briargate
El Paso County
Residential and Commercial Development
Mayhoffer/Singletree Trail
Boulder County
Multiple-use Trail
The Service has developed Ditch Maintenance Guidelines to assist water districts in Colorado in maintaining
ditches in a manner that least impacts the Preble's meadow jumping mouse. These guidelines incorporate Best
Management Practices as standards to undertake during ditch maintenance activities to reduce possible impacts
to the species.
The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Service
signed an agreement on April 17, 2003, that allows CDOT to restore and preserve approximately 25 acres of PMJM
habitat in Castle Rock, Colorado. This acreage may be used to compensate for impacts to PMJM habitat due to
highway projects within the identified service area. Habitat was restored by installing a series of check
structures within East Plum Creek to raise ground water levels lowered by upstream development and subsequent
erosion and down-cutting. This is the first Conservation Bank established for PMJM, and for any species in the
Mountain-Prairie Region.
Critical Habitat identifies specific areas, that are essential to the conservation of Preble's meadow jumping
mouse and that may require special management considerations or protections. Section 7 of the Endangered
Species Act prohibits destruction or adverse modification of a critical habitat by any activity funded,
authorized, or carried out by any Federal agency, and Federal agencies proposing actions affecting areas
designated as critical habitat must consult with the Service on the effects of their proposed actions, pursuant
to section 7(a)(2) of the Act.
In determining which areas to designate as critical habitat the Service is required to use the best scientific
and commercial data available and to consider physical and biological features (primary constituent elements)
that are essential to conservation of the species, and that may require special management consideration and
protection. The primary constituent elements for the PMJM include those habitat components essential for the
biological needs of reproducing, rearing of young, foraging, sheltering, hibernation, dispersal, and genetic
exchange. The PMJM is able to live and reproduce in and near riparian areas located within grassland, shrub
land, forest, and mixed vegetation types where dense herbaceous or woody vegetation occurs near the ground
level, where available open water exists during their active season, and where there are ample upland habitats
of sufficient width and quality for foraging, hibernation, and refuge from catastrophic flooding events. See
related Critical
Habitat Documents linked below.
The critical habitat designation includes river and stream reaches and adjacent floodplains and uplands that
are within the known geographic and elevational range of the PMJM, in the South Platte River and Arkansas
River drainages in Colorado. The designation defines the width of designated critical habitat as a distance
outward from the river or stream edge (as defined by the ordinary high water mark) varying with the size
(order) of a river or stream.
On June 23, 2003, we designated critical habitat for the Preble’s throughout its range. On July 10,
2008, we determined that the Preble’s required continued listing under the Act only in a significant
portion of its range in Colorado, effectively delisting the Preble’s and eliminating designated
critical habitat in Wyoming. On October 7, 2009, we proposed revision of critical habitat for the
Preble’s in Colorado. On May 27, 2010, we released a draft analysis of the potential economic impacts
of the proposed revision, and a draft assessment of the environmental effects of the proposal as required
under the National Environmental Policy Act.
Preble nest. Credit: Craig Hansen.
December 2010: The Fish and Wildlife Service has revised the critical habitat designation
for the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse designating approximately 411 miles of rivers and streams and
34,935 acres of streamside habitat in seven Colorado counties. This revision to the Service’s previous
critical habitat designation adds an additional 177 miles of rivers and streams and 14,255 acres of adjacent
habitat.
Areas designated as critical habitat for the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse in Boulder, Broomfield,
Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Teller counties include riparian corridors along rivers and
streams, adjacent uplands, and areas that provide connectivity between and within populations. Most of the
critical habitat occurs on lands that are privately or federally owned, with the remaining areas under state
and local municipal ownership.
Approximately 550 acres identified as essential to the conservation of the species have been excluded from
critical habitat because they are covered by approved Habitat Conservation Plans that provide greater
benefits. In addition, approximately 3,300 acres of Department of Defense lands are not included in the final
critical habitat designation, because they are covered by approved Integrated Natural Resource Management
Plans.
The Service issues Permits authorizing take of list species resulting from research to gather scientific
information supporting recovery of the PMJM. Parties interested in conducting surveys must apply for a
scientific research permit and must follow the Survey Guidelines developed by the Service. Numerous parties
have been involved in conducting surveys of stream zones and riparian corridors to determine if PMJM is present
or absent in those locations.
The Service has determined that these petitions and new information available in our files provides
substantial biological information to indicate that delisting may be warranted and are initiating a status
review. Upon conclusion of the status review, the Service will issue a finding regarding the listing
status of the species. Because a status review is also required for the 5-year review of listed species
under Section 4(c)(2)(A) of the Act, we are electing to prepare these reviews simultaneously.
